INTRODUCTION The prostate brachytherapy with I 125 seeds has an indication in patients with organconfined prostate cancer. Our objective is to describe the population treated in our institution with permanent I125 seeds implants, the dosimetric characteristics of the technique and the preliminary results of our group-study in terms of evolution and toxicity. MATERIAL AND METHODS Between May 2...

PURPOSE Low-dose-rate (LDR) brachytherapy has been established as an effective and safe treatment option for men with low and intermediate risk prostate cancer. In this retrospective analysis, we sought to study the effect of body mass index (BMI) on post-implant dosimetric quality. MATERIAL AND METHODS After institutional approval, records of patients with non-metastatic prostate cancer trea...

a he optimal treatment for clinically localized prostate cancer remains controversial. For paients with low-risk prostate cancer (Stage T1c2a, Gleason score less than 7, prostate-specific ntigen [PSA] of 10.0 ng/mL), monotherapy with adical prostatectomy, three-dimensional conforal radiotherapy (3D-CRT), intensity-modulated T, or prostate brachytherapy results in similar iochemical relapse-free...

BACKGROUND The publication of several large studies with long-term results on the use of prostate brachytherapy has resulted in increased use of this option for patients with localized prostate cancer. METHODS A historical review of brachytherapy as an approach to prostate cancer management is provided, as well as a general summary of the implant technique and the results to date according to...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE Parameters and indices related to the implant geometry in use for describing the quality of volume implants in interstitial brachytherapy were developed on the basis of LDR-brachytherapy. The aim of our study was to evaluate their usefulness for predicting late toxicity and local control in the PDR-brachytherapy of head-and-neck-tumors. PATIENTS AND METHODS Between Janu...

AIMS Cardiac resynchronization therapy is an established therapy for advanced heart failure. However, coronary sinus access and pacing is not achieved in about 5-10% of patients. The aim of this study was to identify predictive factors for failure of left ventricular (LV) lead transvenous implant. METHODS AND RESULTS We evaluated 212 consecutive patients who received a cardiac resynchronizati...

The study is designed to investigate the effect of edema on the delivered dose, tumor cell surviving fraction (SF), and tumor control probability (TCP) in the patients of prostate cancer who underwent (131)Cs permanent seed implantation. The dose reduction, the SF, and the TCP for edematous prostate implants were calculated for 31 patients who underwent real-time (131)Cs permanent seed implanta...

There is now considerable evidence to suggest that technical innovations, 3D image-based planning, template guidance, computerized dosimetry analysis and improved quality assurance practice have converged in synergy in modern prostate brachytherapy, which promise to lead to increased tumor control and decreased toxicity. A substantial part of the medical physicist's contribution to this multi-d...

PURPOSE Positron emission tomography (PET) provides physiologic information that is not available from computed tomography (CT) or magnetic resonance studies. PET images may allow more accurate delineation of three-dimensional treatment planning target volumes of brachytherapy gynecologic (GYN) implants. This study evaluates the feasibility of using PET as the sole source of target, normal stru...

PURPOSE The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of intraoperative MRI/TRUS fusion procedure in cT3a prostate cancer patients treated with high-dose-rate (HDR) real-time brachytherapy. MATERIAL AND METHODS Prostate gland, dominant intraprostatic lesions (DILs), and extracapsular extension (ECE) were delineated in the pre-brachytherapy magnetic resonance images (MRI) of 9 consecuti...